Lesotho | Stew

Nyekoe

Name: Nyekoe
Prep time: 500 min
Cook time: 130 min
Total time: 630 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Lesotho, Southern Africa
Ingredients: 1½ cups dried sugar beans, soaked overnight; 1 cup sorghum grain, rinsed; 500 g pumpkin, peeled and cubed; 1 medium onion, chopped; 2 tbsp vegetable oil; 8 cups water, plus more as needed; salt and black pepper, to taste

Basotho bean, sorghum, and pumpkin stew simmered slowly until thick, earthy, and gently sweet.

Country

Lesotho

Region

Southern Africa

Time

630 min

Serves

Level

medium

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01 / Get ready

Everything you need

Tap each ingredient as you gather it. Illustrations are visual guides; follow the ingredient names and quantities.

Servings 6

Scale the dish before you shop, then use the checklist while you cook.

Jump to method My cookbook

Ingredients

For 6 servings

Stew

1½ cups dried sugar beans, soaked overnight 1 cup sorghum grain, rinsed 500 g pumpkin, peeled and cubed

Aromatics

1 medium onion, chopped 2 tbsp vegetable oil

Liquid

8 cups water, plus more as needed

Pantry

salt and black pepper, to taste

A few kitchen essentials

Suggested from the recipe method. Use equivalent equipment you have.

Lidded pot

Wooden spoon

02 / Let’s cook

One step at a time

Keep the rhythm calm, watch the texture, and adjust seasoning at the end.

Back to Lesotho

5 steps 500 min prep 130 min cook (check method) 630 min total medium

Soak beans

Cover beans with plenty of water and soak overnight. Drain before cooking.

Soak beans 480:00

Start grains

Combine beans, sorghum, onion, oil, and water in a heavy pot. Bring to a boil.

Simmer slowly

Reduce heat and simmer until the beans and sorghum are nearly tender, adding water as needed.

Simmer grains 90:00

Add pumpkin

Stir in pumpkin and continue cooking until it is soft and the stew is thick.

Cook pumpkin 30:00

Season and mash

Season with salt and pepper. Mash a small portion against the pot to make the stew creamy.

Some homes use samp or cracked maize in place of sorghum; pumpkin or potatoes are common additions for sweetness and body.

Cooking notes, photos & serving ideas

Recipe context

More about this dish

Serving ideas, regional context, and cooking cues for when you want more detail.

When to cook it

Best for Cold-weather family meals. Plan on a medium cook. Allow about 630 minutes total.

What to serve alongside it

Papa, moroho, chile relish, or sour milk on the side

Follow the collection

Vegetarian Africa is the easiest collection to explore after this dish. Vegetarian Africa

Regional lane

Lesotho national table. A structured Lesotho dish in the AfroKitchen archive.

Chef watch-outs

Stopping the base before the pepper, onion, or spice edge has mellowed.
Thinning the pot before the body of the soup or stew has developed.
Rushing the base before the raw edge has cooked out.

How you know it is ready

The sauce should coat the spoon and taste rounded, not watery or raw.
The aroma should smell rounded rather than raw or sharp.
Oil, sauce, broth, or steam should look settled and deliberate.

Recipe photos

See the dish before you cook

Take a closer look at the dish and its serving ideas.

Nyekoe recipe from Lesotho — Nyekoe finished dish

Chef board

Build the table around Nyekoe

Papa, moroho, chile relish, or sour milk on the side

Best route from here

Lesotho national table

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